Heat Capacity and Calorimetry
▶︎ Watch it animatedinteractive step-through · ~3 min · optionalCalorimetry measures the heat of a process from a temperature change using q = mcΔT — mass, specific heat capacity, and the temperature change. In a coffee-cup calorimeter, energy is conserved: the heat released by the reaction equals the negative of the heat absorbed by the solution, qrxn = −qsolution.
The mistakes skip the mass and specific heat (a temperature change alone is not a heat), or confuse heat with temperature. Use q = mcΔT with all three factors, and remember the reaction and solution heats are equal and opposite.
The work
3 ways in · any order
Lesson
Calorimetry
›
Calorimetry finds heat from q = mcΔT, with the reaction and solution heats equal and opposite. The lesson works the calculation and sign, then closes with a ten-scenario check.
Diagnostic
10-item topic check
›
Ten items spanning the Topic 6.4 misconceptions: temperature change used without mass and specific heat, heat equated with temperature, and the calorimetry sign convention mishandled.
Targeted Practice
Drill a single misconception
›
Pick one of the failure modes you missed and drill it on its own. The round is adaptive: two correct in a row clears the misconception and moves you to the next.